Del Rey posted the finished version of the Crucible cover on Facebook today. It hasn’t changed all that drastically since the first version revealed at SDCC. (Click on Luke over there to see the whole thing.) They’re also calling it for Summer 2013, as opposed to the original announcement of Spring, but until we get a more specific date I’m not going quibble over that.

The book is still by Troy Denning, and it’s still a hardcover. We’re pretty much guaranteed to hear more about it next week at Celebration.

SETS UP NEW SERIES: With this book, Han, Luke, and Leia are passing the torch to the next generation of Star Wars heroes, and the stage will be set for the next major Star Wars series.

This isn’t the first time we’ve heard this, but the New Jedi Order didn’t manage it, Legacy of the Force rounded out Jacen Solo only to kill him off, and Ben Skywalker… Well, okay, Ben is in better shape than his cousins ever were as teenagers. But that’s a pretty low bar, and thus a slim hope to hang on. Ironically, just this morning I was talking about an opinion piece I’ve been mulling, tentatively titled “Hey Del Rey, it’s your last chance to make me care about Jaina.” More then…

On the other hand, I’m guessing this means we’ll be seeing either a Jaina or Ben standalone announced at Celebration…

The one I know you’re hanging on your seats for is the first novel to follow the Fate of the Jedi series. Crucible by Troy Denning (of course) is a hardcover standalone with the Big 3 – that is, Luke, Han, and Leia.

They’ve earned the right to rest on their laurels and let the younger generation shoulder the burden–but fate has another adventure in store for our heroes, a quest only they can tackle and hope to survive…

The also revealed the cover and a brief blurb for the fourth Coruscant Nights book, The Last Jedi. It’s also (still) a paperback.

Earlier in the day, Pablo shared a few tidbits from the Quirky Point of View panel. Something that’s sure to thrill a lot of Jaders: Jeffrey Brown will be doing a companion book to Darth Vader and Son, Vader’s Little Princess. And Matthew Reinhart (Star Wars: A Galactic Pop-Up Adventure) is working on a prequel trilogy pop-up book.

SDCC released their Friday schedule, and the wording on the Star Wars EU panel has folks speculating that Troy Denning is back for another round.

3:00-4:00 The Future of Star Wars Publishing: Dark Horse & Del Rey. Find out what’s coming up in the Expanded Universe of Star Wars publishing. Editors Randy Stradley and Dave Marshall from Dark Horse Comics discuss what’s next for Agent of the Empire, Dawn of the Jedi, Lost Tribe of the Sith, and Darth Maul, as well as reveal a new secret title that’s on the horizon. From Del Rey Books editors Frank Parisi and Erich Schoeneweiss, along with author Troy Denning (Apocalypse), look at new novels coming later this year from fan-favorite authors Timothy Zahn and Aaron Allston, as well as give a peek into 2013. Also on the panel is Jennifer Heddle, senior editor at LucasBooks. Moderated by author Pablo Hidalgo (Star Wars: The Essential Reader’s Companion). Room 7AB

I think that the speculation might is almost certainly jumping the gun, and since Golden’s announcement came so late maybe that’s why she’s not a part of it… And who the hell writes these things anyway? Basically, I don’t know. So let’s not panic about Dark Nest 2: Electric Bugaloo just yet, okay? (via)

UPDATE: Roqoo Depot has some thoughts on the comic portion (which I won’t even touch,) but they also speculate that the book announcement might be the upcoming Kemp duology.

However, remember that Heddle told EUC last month about post-Fate: “We’ll be making an announcement about that at San Diego Comic-Con, so stay tuned.”

I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some news on the duology, or even at it being set after Fate of the Jedi, but with Kemp’s wheelhouse thus far being rather niche, I’m not sure it would qualify as big enough news for a general con like SDCC. Still, it’s one of the few announced projects we have little-to-no detail on at the moment, making it a certain contender.

The Star Wars Books page at Facebook had a chat with Troy Denning today. Due to the awkwardness of the format (and to spare you – trust me) I’ve gathered a quick recap of the highlights beneath the cut. The first part contains no spoilers, so if you haven’t finished Apocalypse yet, stop when you hit the red text.

Scoundrels. Del Rey editor Frank Parisi was on last week’s ForceCast where he revealed two of the established characters that will be on the team. (If you want the fairly minor spoilers, highlight this: Kell Tainer and Winter. If Kell means nothing to you, he’s in the X-Wing series.)

Upcoming. We can expect news on something post-Fate of the Jedi what’s next “sometime this summer, if not sooner,” Erich Schoeneweiss said in response to a fan question. Not at SDCC, I hope.